There are two bird families that are known to have relatively large brains in comparison to their body size. Those birds are the Corvids, or  Family Corvidae, (crows, ravens, magpies, etc.) and the Psittacids, or family Psittacidae (parrots). While not a universal rule, a high measure of EQ (encephalization quotient), or measure of an animal's brain size to the expected brain size of its body mass, can indicate a potential for high intelligence. Other observations also give us clues as to how intelligent an animal species is such as problem-solving skills, social behavior, and their ability to learn and adapt to new situations.

Parrots and corvids are considered among the most intelligent animals on the planet. So intelligent in fact that they are used in studies to help us learn about the capacity of animal cognition. If you have parrots in your home, you probably aren’t surprised by any of this. Anyone that has taken the time to watch how their parrot interacts with the world and one another has likely seen that they’re really, really smart. Corvids are also extremely intelligent animals. Their use of tools and ability to solve complex problems continues to impress scientists and everyday observers. Let's take a closer look at what corvids and parrots have in common and why researchers are using them to help us understand animal cognition.

What do They Have in Common?

The Use of Tools 

Parrots and corvids have been observed to use tools to solve problems and achieve their goals. Goffins cockatoos, for example, were observed to recognize when they would need the use of tools and have shown unique flexibility in how they chose to use them. It seems that once a parrot figures out how to use a specific tool, they rarely fail at using it again. Then, we have corvids who are known to be exceptional tool users. For example, New Caledonian crows will create compound tools by combining two or more otherwise non-functional parts in order to create a novel tool that fits their needs. Young crows will often “steal” their parents' tools in order to learn about how to create them. Tools are often used to help the birds get to food that might be out of reach or are tricky to access. Researchers believe that there was a convergence of associative tool use (using more than one tool to achieve a single goal) between birds and primates, which is a more complicated form of tool use than we see in most other animals. (Photo shown is of a New Caledonian Crow, taken by Ken Bohn)

They Have Complex Social Lives

Bonding and Relationships

When it comes to parrots, researchers are finding more and more that they have very rich, complex social lives within their flocks. The way that they interact with their flock mates often depends on the unique bonds they form. For example, in one study, scientists decided to look at Monk parakeets (commonly referred to as Quakers) to get a better understanding of their social behavior. They found that those birds live similar social lives that us humans do. They tend to have an intimate partner that they chose to spend most of their time with, but they also have relationships with varying degrees of closeness with other birds in their flock. How they choose proximity to others depends on their closeness with the birds. We can imagine this by thinking of our comfort level with other humans. We’re more likely to sit closest to our mate than with our brother or sister. But more likely to be in close proximity to a family member than our acquaintances, etc. We tend to see this pattern with most species of parrots.

Corvids continue to amaze us when we look at their social lives. Ravens understand different affiliations within their groups and even neighboring ones. They can recognize and remember individuals for several years. Crows can recognize the faces of humans, too. They will remember a person that has provided them food and will even hold a grudge for years to a person that has wronged them. Strong bonds are formed even with non-mates and they support one another during stressful situations and conflict, and will console each other when the conflict is over.  A study also found that ravens not only understand the social structure within their own group, but they also observe and understand relations within neighboring groups of ravens. They gather information about the hierarchy and other social dynamics of other groups and consider the possibility of forming alliances. Crows also display very strong emotions similar to what we have observed in other intelligent species like great apes, dolphins, elephants, and of course humans. This contributes to their complex social lives. They will engage in play with each other, hold grudges, and will even hold what appears to be a funeral for family members that have passed away. People that befriend groups of crows have noted that when one passes away, the rest of the group seems to display a real sense of loss for some time afterward. The bonds that they form are deep and real and remind me so much of the way us humans bond with one another. This is an important consideration for when we consider how we treat the animals around us.

Cooperation and Communication

This is also an important part of determining the complexity of an animal’s social intelligence. Scientists believe that the emergence of complex cognitive abilities in bird species such as corvids and psittacids came to be in part because of the pressures of day to day life. Cooperation is a key element for both species of birds when it comes to dealing with those pressures and increasing the likelihood of survival. 

Species of parrots like the African Grey will readily help others to do things like obtain food without requiring reciprocation. They will also work together to achieve goals and solve problems. They’re impressive communicators, too. People used to believe that parrots would mindlessly mimic human speech without much meaning or understanding behind it. However, we now know that this idea is completely false. Research has shown that they understand the context and meaning behind their vocalizations and the words they learn from us. They use vocalization, body language, and will mimic others in order to form bonds with others in their flock. Corvids often forage together, share food, and defend territories as a group. They also pass on important information like where to find food and where threats might exist in order to help each other avoid them. The Florida scrub-jay engages in cooperative breeding. Their young are raised not only by their parents, but also by non-breeding relatives. They will help to defend the nest and will also help feed the young.

Researchers believe that sociality in a species likely created the need for complex communication, and it's thanks to the way animals evolved to meet that need that humans can communicate the way that we do. We can learn a lot about ourselves by looking at how other animals evolved as well.

Cognitive Capabilities

Dr. Irene Pepperberg is a researcher and professor at Boston University that studies animal cognition. Her African grey parrot, Griffin, outperformed five-year-old children when it came to understanding concepts of certainty versus possibility. Many of our studies involve African Greys because of how intelligent and capable they are to communicate with us. It is my belief that many parrots have a similar intelligence to African Grey parrots. However, their impressive vocal capabilities make it easier for us to bridge the gap in our communication and measure their understanding. That is my non-scientist opinion, however!

Rooks and crows have displayed the ability to understand physics. In one study, they were seen to take an experience, and through trial and error, use what they’ve learned about how an object will fall, move, or shift and apply that knowledge to novel situations. This knowledge goes beyond the comprehension of some primates. You don’t have to be a scientist to see how smart corvids are. Have you ever watched them interact with one another or try to problem solve to get a piece of food? You can find some fascinating examples of people observing the cognitive capabilities of these birds right in their backyards.  

Why It’s Important to Understand the Intelligence of Birds

My personal hero, Dr. Irene Pepperberg, Adjunct Research Professor at Boston University and lifelong studier of parrot cognition once said that “we are a part of nature, not apart from nature” and  “when you don’t understand the abilities of a species, you lose something that's part of the world and part of everything around you, and I think we need to appreciate all of that.”  Dr. Pepperberg refers to the parrots that she has raised and studied as her colleagues. Her appreciation for birds and how she views their place in the world is how I believe we all need to think about animals. Research continues on parrots and corvids - and they continue to impress us and challenge the way we think about animal cognition and consciousness. In an ideal world, we would want to study animals for no other reason than to learn about them and how to help them thrive. However, most animal research is conducted in order to compare them to humans and help us understand our own behavior and needs. So, crows and parrots are often studied in order to help us better understand ourselves. While there has been some helpful information that we’ve gathered for this purpose, I strongly feel that we should learn about these bird’s intelligence for other reasons, too.

Understanding how smart these birds are helps us to provide a better environment for them both in the wild and in our homes. Corvids and parrots are much smarter than we ever imagined. No longer is the common thought within the scientific community that birds are mindless automatons. We now know that they are complex, fully conscious,  intelligent souls with their own rich lives. With that understanding comes the uncomfortable truth that they can, have, and do suffer because of us and our lack of understanding. When a person has a parrot, for example, and they don’t take good care of them, that parrot suffers on a deep level. I think if more people truly understood that, we would see a huge rise in the quality of their care. We would see less birds sitting alone in dirty, small cages all day and more birds healthy, flying, and engaging in play. We would also hopefully see people demanding better practices from the breeders and pet stores that sell parrots such as allowing them to be weaned by their parents instead of taking them away as soon as they hatch. 

The corvids of the world have suffered, too. Everyday we destroy more of their habitat and contribute to other harmful changes in the environment. One example of the many harmful consequences of climate change is an accelerated spread of disease. Unfortunately, mosquitos are one of the few species that might thrive as climate change continues. If mosquito numbers increase, so will the incidence rate of West Nile virus. Crows are especially vulnerable to the disease. Our harmful activities have also altered their migration patterns causing mismatched habitat timing and creating issues with finding food. 

What happens to one of us, happens to all of us. We are all intricately connected on Earth. Even if a person doesn't have much interest in animals, they should take the time to understand them in order to understand how their survival impacts our own. 

References:

Osuna-Mascaró, Antonio J., et al. “Flexible tool set transport in Goffin’s cockatoos.” Current Biology, vol. 33, no. 5, Mar. 2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2023.01.023. 

Bayern, A. M., et al. “Compound tool construction by New Caledonian Crows.” Scientific Reports, vol. 8, no. 1, 24 Oct. 2018, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33458-z. 

“Illuminating the Amazing Work of Bird Brains.” Dr. Irene Pepperberg, YouTube, MIT Alumni Association. 

Hobson, Elizabeth A., et al. “The socioecology of monk parakeets: Insights into Parrot Social Complexity.” The Auk, vol. 131, no. 4, Oct. 2014, pp. 756–775, https://doi.org/10.1642/auk-14-14.1. 

Massen, Jorg J., et al. “Ravens notice dominance reversals among conspecifics within and outside their Social Group.” Nature Communications, vol. 5, no. 1, 22 Apr. 2014, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms4679. 

“Prosocial and Tolerant Parrots Help Others to Obtain Food.” Startseite - Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, 9 Jan. 2020, www.mpg.de/14328111/prosocial-grey-parrots. 

Tam, Benita Y., and Leonard J. Tsuji. “West Nile virus in American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) in Canada: Projecting the influence of climate change.” GeoJournal, vol. 81, no. 1, 31 Oct. 2014, pp. 89–101, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-014-9609-z. 

Clayton, Nicola S., and Nathan J. Emery. “The social life of Corvids.” Current Biology, vol. 17, no. 16, Aug. 2007, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2007.05.070.